Mexico has become a country prevalent in human trafficking, prompting the creation of the
Alliance Against Human Trafficking in Mexico by
PADF, who have worked alongside
MTV Latin America to fight the issues that affects thousands of women, young people, children, and immigrants from Central America who have been deceived by false promises of better salaries and opportunities.

"In Mexico, we face not only the problem of human trafficking, but the growing epidemic that is destroying the lives of thousands of young people. Through the alliance between PADF and MTV Latin America, this documentary offers an effective way to communicate the preventative message that can reach vulnerable groups, especially children and young people to alert them of the dangers," said Louis Alexander, the General Director of Programs for PADF. In addition, it supports the efforts of the Mexican government to work closer with the civil society and the private sector to fight against new forms of modern slaver."

"
PADF is proud to help in the creation of this synergy with MTV Latin America, as well as the Alliance Against Human Trafficking in Mexico. This effort clearly demonstrates how the public and private sectors can benefit from the strengths of each other and work together to approach the social problems that affect our communities," said Paul Fisher, Director of Public-Private Alliances and Development of PADF.

Since 2004,
MTV EXIT has created award-winning productions dealing with themes of human trafficking and exploitation throughout music, film, celebrities and has distributed creative and innovative content to audiences in Latin America, Asia, and Europe. Through successful initiatives,
PADF has also participated in educating young people and protecting human rights in Latin America and the Caribbean, especially in countries like Haiti and the Dominican Republic, where child trafficking for domestic slavery ends has risen considerably.

"MTV Latin America has joined the fight against human trafficking and exploitation, which is a grave problem that affects everyone. Our four capsules titled Invisible Slaves aim to call attention to this issue, which not easy to detect,"said Mario-Cader Frech, Vice President of Public Affairs and Corporate Social Responsibility of Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) the Americas. Because of lack of awareness, young people are deceived by the false promises of traffickers who prey on their desires. Many stay trapped in their situation because they are afraid that if they try to escape, they will suffer physical harm or death."

The18-minute documentary
Invisible Slaves (the Animation) features
Rene Joglar and
Eduardo Cabra, from the musical group
Calle 13. They introduce each animated capsule and Rene narrates throughout each of the four stories. The stories are aimed at young people in Latin America, particularly Mexico, where human trafficking and exploitation is especially grave. The capsules will be released on
August 31
st, during
MTV Latin America's usual programming and will be available today
, July 31
st, on
www.mtvla.com.

MTV Latin America taped the documentary-capsules featuring four testimonials of young victims in Mexico and Guatemala. The goal of the capsules is to bring a higher awareness of this serious problem, which is difficult to detect. By educating young audiences, they will be able to stay alert and not fall prey to traffickers.

The first capsule features the story of Jose, a Salvadoran immigrant in Guatemala, who was abandoned by his family and exploited by a gang into selling drugs. The second capsule tells the story of Laura, a young Mexican girl who was deceived by a pimp when she was 17 years old, forced into prostitution, and was fortunately able to escape. The third capsule describes the story of Marcela; a Mexican girl who was tricked into prostitution when she was 13 after living trapped for2 years. The last capsule portrays Maria's story; a girl from Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico who became an orphan and went to live with a family who exploited her for labor and beat her.

Before the showing of the documentary, Rene from Calle 13 sent a few words to the media representatives and the audience. He reiterated his commitment to fight human trafficking and exploitation.

Rene said, "We all hope to see Mexico free of human trafficking, where the voices of many young people will never be silenced. This is why; we joined with
MTV EXIT and collaborated with
PADF to promote this important cause. We hope that the stories of these young survivors will reach young Mexicans and have an impact on the whole country."

"Human trafficking is 21
st century slavery and young people are the primary victims," said Rene, who in late 2011, collaborated with UNICEF to launch the
MTV EXIT Latin America campaign in the United Nations headquarters in New York along with his fellow band member, Eduardo. The premiere of MTV Latin America's
Invisible Slaves was held today in an exclusive media showcase in Mexico City, which was attended by representatives from the Alliance and special guests.

Kate del Castillo, actress and spokeswoman for the
Your Voice Against Human Trafficking campaign, and ambassador
against human trafficking for the National Commission of Human Rights (NCHR), took part in the presentation and spoke about her work in the cause and her thoughts about the documentary produced by
MTV Latin America, PADF, and
the Alliance.

"Without a doubt, human trafficking affects everyone. Each day further damages our society and it will continue if we don't work together to raise awareness, inform the public, and protect those who are most vulnerable in Mexico: children, young people, and women," said Kate del Castillo. "Today, the movement against human trafficking continues to grow in Mexico thanks to collaborations such as
PADF,
MTV Latin America, NCHR, and others who partake in the new
Alliance against human trafficking in Mexico. I invite everyone who wants to join this effort," she added.

With the help of
Fundación Cinépolis and
Fundación Telefónica's program
, Proniño,
Invisible Slaves will travel to seven states throughout south and central Mexico, including Chiapas, Oaxaca, Veracruz, Puebla, Hidalgo, Guerrero, and Mexico City as part of the Cinepolis tour. These showings will take place in open-air locations where thousands of children, young people, and families from nearby communities will attend; communities where human trafficking and exploitation is particularly severe.

The documentary is an important component of the Alliance's campaign
Your Voice Against Human Trafficking, which supports initiatives by
MTV EXIT. The campaign will continue to grow in Mexico through the media, social network activism, a poster campaign and local events aimed at children and young people.

Your Voice Against Human Trafficking was created by the Alliance to raise awareness against human trafficking in Mexico. The campaign has included support from MTV Latin America, Fundación Telefónica, Fundación Cinépolis, Panamerican Fundation for Development (PADF), National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR), the Secretary of Communications and Transport (SCT), and groups in civil society. The documentary, along with the campaign, aim to educate about how to avoid becoming a victim of human trafficking and exploitation, measure awareness among young people, involve young people in educating each other, and a call to action to prevent future victims by spreading the message throughout social media networks.